State Executions -- the NHS in Britain

If you live in the UK and, like the majority, rely on the National Health Service, you may want to read your medical notes hanging at the end of the hospital bed.

Whether you know it or not; whether you believe it or not; up and down the country, little discussions take place. Sometimes these discussions involve the victims family and sometimes they don't. So should you happen to have a tidy pile of cash stashed away and you see your 'concerned relatives' having discussions with a doctor, make sure you check your medical notes for terms that involve the phrases, "Do not resucitate," and "Do not intervene,".

If you want to die because you have had enough of life or an illness, fair enough. If you want to live, understand that your fate is being decided not by you, but by those around you. Those 'concerned relatives' who like the look of your bank balance will nod gravely and say, "I think it's for the best, doctor," when asked whether to keep you alive or not.

The cruelest by far is "Do not intervene," since this means you will not receive food or water unless you can actually force it down your throat all by yourself. Should you be unfortunate enough to require hydration in the form of a drip or nasogastric tube, forget it. You will be left to die of dehydration.

If you can drink by yourself but need help with food, for example, via a tube-feeder, you will be allowed to starve to death.

"Do not resucitate," is the kinder of the two since it only means you will be left to die should you have, say, a heart attack. No 'code-blue' for you.

You don't have a say in the matter unless you happen to stumble on the phrases in your notes. No-one is allowed to tell you.

When an animal is sick and requires dispatching, a humane way of doing the job so the animal does not suffer is found. It is quick and painless.

Humans who live in the UK and fall into the clutches of the NHS when they are too frail and ill to be able to fend for themselves are being denied the basic human right to food and drink. Welcome to 21st Century Britain.